Exploratory mission to the Parliament of Sierra Leone
For much of the 1990s, Sierra Leone was embroiled in a violent civil war. It is now at a defining moment in its history. Its people have considerable expectations of the current government and parliament to implement reforms following the decade-long civil war. A joint IPU-United Nations field mission proposed a series of activities designed to help the parliament to perform better its functions and thus increase its ability to contribute to effective governance.
Sierra Leone has come a long way over the years since the conflict, but it is on a fragile middle ground where the violence of war has ended while the ways of peace have yet to be fully restored. Shortly after the August 2007 legislative elections, the IPU in cooperation with the United Nations Integrated Office in Sierra Leone (UNIOSL) and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), sent a field mission to review the functioning of the parliament, identify bottlenecks and needs and propose solutions that could be implemented with possible external support.
The mission held wide-ranging discussions with members and staff of the parliament. The parliament's multi-party configuration, with a large number of well-educated, young and dynamic members, including 16 women members, provides all the ingredients for a productive and effective legislative body that can pass sound laws, ensure proper oversight of the government and represent the people. Nonetheless, 80 per cent of the current members of parliament are first-time members and special measures will have to be taken to swiftly induct this group into parliamentary life, thus allowing them to effectively carry out their role.
The mission has proposed a series of activities designed to alleviate these difficulties and help the parliament to perform better. Success in achieving an effective and efficiently functioning legislature will depend on the parliamentary authorities taking steps to reform and modernize the parliament's working methods and strengthen its resources - human and technical - through the full implementation of the Parliamentary Service Act September 2007.
Support from the international community will also be crucial for the parliament to improve its longterm ability to carry out its representative, lawmaking and oversight functions.
Maldives
At the request of the Maldivian Majlis, the IPU organized a three-day seminar in October in Male, Maldives, on Parliaments and the Budget Process. The discussion centred on practical experiences about the respective roles and functions of the executive branch of government and parliament in the budgetary process. The seminar aimed to provide MPs and parliamentary staff with a deeper understanding of the budgetary process and the approval process for the budget and provide them with the necessary tools and resources for developing and analysing the budget. The gender implications of budgeting were also addressed.
In the wings of this seminar, the team of experts that made presentations also undertook an assessment of the needs of the Maldivian Parliament with a view to preparing a project of assistance to strengthen the capacity of the parliament to perform its representative, lawmaking and oversight functions more efficiently.
Lao People's Democratic Republic
The IPU, in partnership with UNDP and the National Assembly of the Lao PDR, organized a regional capacity-building seminar from 26 to 28 November 2007 in Vientiane on sustainable development for the parliaments of the Asia-Pacific region. The seminar focused on three topics identified by the parliaments of the region: poverty reduction, energy and biodiversity. Over the threeday event, participants, along with several Lao and international resource persons, discussed and exchanged experiences on how to implement sustainable development.
The recommendations that emerged from the meeting focus on the need for: education and sensitization; financial resources and efficient use thereof; effective cooperation at the regional, global, community and sub-national levels; and a research programme on the use of suitable technologies. MPs have called for a follow-up of the seminar whereby IPU would continue to assist parliamentarians of the Asia- Pacific region in their work on achieving sustainable development.